Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Exhibition Opens at Buckingham Palace

While the recent birth of Prince George has royal watchers looking forward to the future of the British monarchy, a new exhibition at Buckingham Palace is offering a peek into the past with displays of one of the crowning moments in modern history.

In celebration of the 60th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation, through September 29, 2013 Anglophiles can file into the monarch’s official London residence to view objects which chronicle the event.

Followers of fashion will be awarded with an up close look at the garments which have been woven into the very fabric of our collective memory, from the cream-colored woolen trousers and lace-lined silk shirt worn by a young Prince Charles and dainty, doll-like silk and lace dress donned by little Princess Anne to the creations of Norman Hartnell, who designed the intricately embroidered attire of the Maids of Honour as well as the masterpiece worn by Her Majesty, which bears the emblems of England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales in threads of silver and gold.

Along with an array of regal raiments, the exhibition also showcases such artifacts as Prince Charles’ illustrated coronation invitation; official portraits from the lens of Cecil Beaton; the pen which recorded the Queen’s coronation oath; The Throne Chair; place settings which recreate the auspicious occasion’s two state banquets; the jewelry which provided extra sparkle to the treasured day, including the 1,333 diamonds on the Queen’s diamond diadem, which twinkles in the light just as it did as the Queen made her way to Westminster Abbey on June 2, 1953, and the Coronation necklace which had been worn by Queen Alexandra, Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth (the Queen Mother) on the coronation days of three kings; and home movies which offer a glimpse into private moments of one of this century’s most public figures.